Method and apparatus for energy conversion



Oct. 3, 1967 R. P. KIDWELL 3,345,524

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ENERGY CONVERSION Filed Sept. 23, 1965 DIRECTION OF PLASMA LlQUID LITHIUM HYDRIDE CONDENSER MEANS INVENTOR. Roasn'r P. KwwELL United States Patent 3,345,524 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ENERGY CONVERSION Robert P. Kidwell, 5249 Wren, Apt. 50, El Paso, Tex. 79924 Filed Sept. 23, 1965, Ser. No. 495,011 6 Claims. (Cl. 310-11) This is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 113,443, filed May 29, 1961, on Apparatus for Controlling Conductive Fluids, now US. Patent No. 3,273,336 and application Ser. No. 233,567 on a Method and Apparatus for Energy Conversion, filed Oct. 29, 1962, now abandoned.

The present invention relates to a method of and an apparatus for reversibly heating electronic plasma and extracting electrical energy therefrom.

Electronic plasma usually consists of highly ionized gases comprising a mixture of electrons and ions forming an extremely good conductor of electricity. The ionization of the gas is maintained by keeping the plasma at a high temperature.

The object of the invention is to provide an apparatus and a method for reversibly interchanging alternating power with the heat energy of electronic plasma in a simple and eflicient manner.

One of the important basic aspects of the present invention is the discovery that highly useful interactions between flowing plasma streams can be obtained where a moving stream of plasma is caused to spiral about another moving stream of plasma. A moving plasma stream acts in many respects like a flow of current in a conductor having the configuration of the plasma stream, and so the spiraling plasma stream produces a magnetic field under electromotive forces, said field extending in the direction of movement of the other plasma stream and the latter plasma stream produces a magnetic field surrounding the same. The speed of movement is continuously varied by the electromotive forces so that either magnetic field induces eddy currents in the other plasma stream. The resulting interaction between the two streams is the heating of the particles thereof.

The desired configuration of the plasma streams is achieved by confining the charged particles involved, preferably by magnetic focussing means, to move along the desired paths, one being a single loop and the other being a continuous helix spiraling around the loop. The movement of the charged particles of the plasma streams is best achieved by causing the plasma streams to pass around the leg of a transformer or electromotive force means and by passing alternating current through a primary winding wound on the core.

The heating of the plasma streams to a high temperature requires the plasma streams to reach thermal equilibrium in an extremely short period of time, which is the main condition for a reversible interaction with the loop, which may, for example, be five meters long, and

a second plasma stream into a spiraling loop making, for example, ten turns per meter, said rings being alternately magnetized oppositely from front to back with perhaps one hundred or more gauss magnetic field strength.

3,345,524 Patented Oct. 3, 1967 The rings are enclosed within a container filled, for example, with hydrogen and lithium vapor at a low density, such as 10 atmospheres, and caused to pass through the core of a transformer whose secondary windings are the plasma streams. The primary winding may, for example, be twenty turns of wire. The primary winding of the transformer may be energized by 1000 kva. of AC power.

Under these conditions energy is stored within the configuration in oscillatory fashion, varying, for example, between zero and two million joules at peak, elevating the temperature of the loop plasma to extremely high temperatures. The currents induced into the plasma stream can generate magnetic fields in excess of five webers per square meter of fifty thousands gauss, thereby interacting with the plasma streams through a thickness not exceeding one centimeter, internal to which essentially no magnetic field penetrates the plasma. The magnetic rings refine the confinement by reflecting occasional escaping ions and electrons back into the region of the plasma.

The above and other objects, advantages, and features of the invention will become apparent upon making reference to the specification to follow, the claims and the drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a view of the magnetic field and the eddy currents resulting from the flow of alternating current through a conductor surrounded by a block of conductive material;

FIG. 2 illustrates the manner in which the process of the present invention is carried out through the interaction of the magnetic fields of two streams of charged plasma particles; 7

FIG. 3 is an enlarged transverse section through FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a simplified form of energy storage and conversion apparatus which carries out the method aspects of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary enlarged view of magnetic ring assemblies which confine the charged plasma particles in.

the apparatus of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary view of a pair of magnetic rings forming a part of one of the magnetic ring assemblies of FIG. 5.

Refer now to FIG. 1 which illustrates the eflFect of a magnetic field B generated by an alternating current I flowing in a conductor 2 on a block of metal 3 surrounding the conductor 2. If at a given instant the current I is flowing in the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. 1, the magnetic field B will be instantaneously in the direction shown. Eddy current i will be induced in the block of metal 3 which, at any instant, will flow in a direction which produces a resultant magnetic field B which oppose the magnetic field B caused by the current I.

The present invention takes advantage of the characteristics of the electric circuit shown in FIG. 1 in a somewhat different environment, namely in electronic plasma streams P1 and P2 shown in FIG. 2 comprising moving electrons and gaseous ions alternating in direction at a given frequency. The plasma stream P1 acts like the current-carrying conductor 2 in FIG. 1, the flow of charged particles therein forming or acting like an electrical current I1. When the current or charged particles I1 is flowing in the direction of the arrows shown in FIG. 2, it produces a magnetic field B1 (FIG. 3).

The plasma stream P2 has a helical shape and spirals around the plasma stream P1. The helical stream P2 acts like a current-carrying conductor winding, the current therein producing a resultant magnetic field B3 (FIG. 2) which acts along the axis of the helix, which is along the axis of the plasma stream P1.

The magnetic field B1 of the plasma stream P1 induces eddy currents 12 in the helical plasma stream P2 which produce a magnetic field B2 (FIG. 3) which opposes the magnetic field B1 of plasma stream P1. Every charged particle in each plasma stream takes its turn trying to penetrate the surrounding magnetic field. This magnetic field is made strong enough to turn each particle back into the stream. While the magnetic field is increasing in magnitude, the charged particles return to the plasma with more energy and while the magnetic field is decreasing the particles return thereto with less energy.

The resultant interaction of the various fields B1, B2, and B3 produces important results referred to in the introductory part of the specification. Thus, among other things, energy is transferred from the alternating energy source, which accelerates to charged particles within the plasma streams, to the charged particles in the form of heat.

With the relationship of the plasma streams described, it is possible to effect extremely high temperatures within the plasma streams. This energy can be extracted in the form of useful electrical energy in the manner to be explained. To this end, reference should be made to the apparatus shown in FIGS. 4 through 6. As there shown, the plasma streams P1 and -P2 are located within an insulated housing or chamber 10. The chamber 10 contains ionized hydrogen and lithium particles at a very low pressure '(e.g., latmospheres). The particles are fed to the chamber through an inlet pipe 12 which carries or communicates with a body of lithium hydride liquid 14 which evaporates at 10* atmospheres. The particles within the chamber 10 are initially heated in any suitable way, such as by a heater coil 11, to produce the ionized lithium and hydrogen particles. For example a temperature of 2000 degrees Kelvin anywhere within the ring assembly will ionize the gaseous particles sufliciently for the accelerating means or input transformer 23 to complete the ionization in a manner similar to the operation of a fluorescent lamp.

The hydrogen and lithium particles are confined by the ring assemblies to form the plasma streams P1 and P2 by means including series of ring magnets 15 and 17 which extend along a continuous loop. The axis of the assembly of ring magnets 17 falls along a helix which spirals around the assembly of ring magnets 15. The two assemblies of ring magnets extend around the leg 19 of the core 21 of an input transformer 23 and the leg 25 of the core 26 of an output transformer 28. The plasma streams confined by the two assemblies of ring magnets act as secondary windings of the input transformer 23 and the primary windings on the output transformer 28. The cores 21 and 26 of the input and output transformers have legs 30 and 32 on the outside of the chamber 10 and bridging core portions extending through sealed openings 34 and 36 of the chamber 10 to connect with the core legs 19 and 25, respectively, on the inside of the chamber 10. An alternating current generator 38 is coupled through a manual switch 39 to primary windings 40 extending around the transformer core leg 30 to induce an alternating voltage or electromotive force within the charged particles confined by the group of ring magnets extending around the transformer core leg 19. This voltage produces an acceleration force which impels the charged particles alternately in opposite directions along the continuous paths defined by the two assemblies of magnetic rings. The energy in the moving charged particles can be magnetically coupled from the plasma streams by means including secondary windings extending around the output transformer leg 32. A suitable load device 42 is selectively coupled to the secondary windings by a manual switch 43.

The ring magnets of each assembly of ring magnets are held together by struts 44 to form an integral structure which, in turn, is suspended in any suitable way within the chamber 10. For example, the ring magnets may be supported by insulating rods 45 secured to the walls of the chamber 10. Each of the ring magnets has one of its poles 46 extending along one of its axially facing sides and the opposite pole 48 extending along the opposite axially facing side. The magnetic field pattern of each of the ring magnets is shown by the arrows in FIG. 6 and is similar in shape to a doughnut. The ring magnets are positioned generally in coaxial alignment and in alternating opposed relation, so that the north pole side of a given ring magnet will face the north pole side of the adjacent magnet and the south pole side of any ring magnet will face the south pole side of the adjacent ring magnet. With such an arrangement the direction of the lines of force of adjacent magnets oppose rather than reinforce one another. In effect, the integrity of the magnetic field of each of the ring magnets is maintained so that a magnetic field pattern is provided within the chamber 10 which alternates in direction along the assemblies 15 and 17. The field pattern thus comprises the individual pattern elements contributed by each ring magnet and extends generally axially within the ring and generally radially at points between the contiguous ring magnets.

If the ring magnets were spaced in a regular manner, it is possible for a resonant interaction to occur between the field and the charged particles of the moving plasma streams which causes wide variations in the diameters of the plasma streams. To minimize this condition, the ring magnets are spaced in an irregular manner. That is to say, the spacing of these magnets varies and the spacing between the maximum and minimum spacings points varies so that an irregular spacing pattern results. Although the permanent ring magnets just described are preferred, they could be replaced by electromagnet means, not shown.

Periodically, the heated ionized gases within the chamber 10 are withdrawn through an outlet pipe 60 to maintain the desired pressure or density. The gaseous lithium and hydrogen particles in the pipe 60 are condensed in a suitable condenser to form the liquid lithium hydride 14 which again evaporates when it is subjected to the low pressure conditions at the outlet of the inlet pipe 12. The condenser and filter referred to are diagrammatically illustrated by a box 62 in FIG. 4.

When the manual switch 39 is closed to couple the generator 38 to the primary windings 40 of the input transformer 23, the ionized lithium and hydrogen particles within the assemblies of ring magnets 15 and 17 will be accelerated in alternated directions within the paths defined by the ring magnets. As previously indicated, there will be an interchange of energy between the streams which will effect heating of the charged particles. The spiraling of the plasma stream confined within the helical assembly of ring magnets 15 results in extremely quick and efiicient heating of the particles to provide extremely high temperatures.

It should be understood that numerous modifications may be made of the preferred form of the invention described above without deviating from the broader aspects of the present invention.

I claim:

1. Energy conversion means comprising: first means for confining charged particles within a limited region along a first path, second means for confining charged particles within a limited region along a second helical path spiraling around said first path, and means for simultaneously accelerating charged particles along said first and second paths at the same frequency to form magnetically interacting and reinforcing streams of charged particles.

2. Energy conversion means comprising: first means for confining charged particles within a limited region along a first path, second means for confining charged particles within a limited region along a second helical path spiraling around said first path, means for simultaneously accelerating charged particles along said first and second paths at the same frequency to form magnetically interacting and reinforcing streams of charged particles, and transformer means having secondary winding means linked by the magnetic field of at least one of said streams which induces a voltage therein to couple energy from said stream.

3. The energy conversion means of claim 2 wherein said first and second means comprise spaced rings of permanently magnetized material whose transverse axes fall along the associated paths, each of said rings having one of its magnetic poles extending along one of its axially facing sides and the other magnetic pole extending along the opposite axially facing side thereof, and the rings in each group being oriented in alternating opposed relation so that the confronting aixally facing sides of adjacent rings are of the same magnetic pole.

4. A method of heating charged particles comprising the steps of: accelerating a first plasma stream of charged particles along a first path, and simultaneously accelerating a second plasma stream of charged particles along a second helical path spiraling around said first path, to elfect heating of the charged particles by energy transference between the magnetic fields of the plasma streams and the charged particles.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein said charged particles are ions of one of the group consisting of hydrogen, helium and lithium.

6. Energy conversion apparatus comprising: mean. forming a chamber for holding a supply of ions at very low pressures and at very high temperatures, first and second plasma guide means in said chamber providing a first continuous plasma stream and a second continuous plasma of helical configuration which spirals around said first stream, means for simultaneously accelerating said ions along said first and second paths, said accelerating means including an input transformer for inducing a voltage along said paths to accelerate said ions, the magnetic fields of said first and second paths interacting with one another to effect heating of the ions therein, and output transformer means magnetically coupled to said accelerated ions for extracting electrical energy therefrom.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,054,742 9/1962 Thonemann et al. 176-2 3,125,492 5/1964 Baker 176-2 3,155,592 11/1964 Hansen et a1. 176-2 3,252,047 5/1966 Fonda-Bonardi 1762 REUBEN EPSTEIN, Primary Examiner. 

1. ENERGY CONVERSION MEANS COMPRISING: FIRST MEANS FOR CONFINING CHARGED PARTICLES WITHIN A LIMITED REGION ALONG A FIRST PATH, SECOND MEANS FOR CONFINING CHARGED PARTICLES WITHIN A LIMITED REGION ALONG A SECOND HELICAL PATH SPIRALING AROUND SAID FIRST PATH, AND MEANS FOR SIMULTANEOUSLY ACCELERATING CHARGED PARTICLES ALONG SAID FIRST AND SECOND PATHS AT THE SAME FREQUENCY TO FORM MAGNETICALLY INTERACTING AND REINFORCING STREAMS OF CHARGED PARTICLES. 